Voices off: Reconstructing Career Theory and Practice for Cultural Diversity‪.‬

The most fundamental challenge that career psychology faces is the construction of a new identity that will challenge the career theories and counselling practices that have occupied centre stage in evolving forms for over a century As part of that challenge, career practitioners and career educators need to address the critical question of what constitutes a good narrative for career practice at the present time. Central to the re-definition of career theory and counselling is the need to address and redress the diversity of environments in which career development and career counselling takes place. The present article explores the cultural roles inherent in career counselling and the possible reconstruction of the identity of career practitioners, particularly in terms of their responsibilities in culturally diverse settings. This exploration raises ethical concerns about the present training of career practitioners. The present article focuses on the culture that career theory and career counselling has generated. In so doing it challenges career practitioners to consider how they have constructed their career counselling process and whether they need to re-imagine and re-construct their role in this process. There is an increasing sensitivity to such a challenge, particularly in terms of how to career counsel in multicultural societies. South Africa is a case in point where 'politics, economics and prevailing social conditions have perniciously affected the nature, form and direction of career psychology in South Africa' {Nicholas, Naidoo, & Pretorius, 2006, p. 2). Faced with 11 official languages, South African career practitioners have to explore and carefully consider the culture of career theory and practice in terms of what makes realistic, contextual sense.